So, I’m back from a long weekend in Baltimore and I had a whale of a time. That is one awesome city…and so east coast it made me ache. Loved it. I ate great seafood. Hello crab! I also ate a Cannoli from Vaccaro’s as instructed by a friend. I did however get food poisoning on my last day. We won’t talk about it much since this is a food blog and noone wants to read about puking on a food blog, but if you’ve ever had food poisoning before then you know what’s what. Yeah. It was rough. And it started on the plane home…

Anyway! I’m back and I spent a whole day sleeping to recover…and now I’m good.

I checked the weather for the next ten days in Minneapolis and it looks something like 82F and sunny every.single.day. I’m so happy for it. My heart really does sing for summer. Needless to say, the grill will be out in full force the next few weeks.


If you’re looking for something a little different to throw on the grill then can I say that this sandwich was a massive winner. You don’t always want to grill meat or poke vegetables on skewers, know what I mean? These were the perfect alternative. I don’t know if chihuahua cheese is common (do you?) because I had never seen it before but we picked it because it looked like it would do a decent job of melting. It worked a treat but any mild cheese would work well. I wouldn’t recommend something too rich or stanky.

Prosciutto Chihuahua Panini

Ingredients

• 1/2 loaf of ciabatta bread, sliced into four
• 4 ounces chihuahua cheese
• 9 slices (around 2 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto
• 1 to 3 preserved grilled red peppers
• Olive oil for brushing

Directions

1. Slice chihuahua and red peppers into shape and size pieces similar to the bread slices you are using. I used store-bought grilled red peppers that are jarred in oil. Brush bread slices lightly with olive oil and place face down on the grill for a couple of minutes until golden.
2. Layer cheese and prosciutto on one side of your sandwich and grilled red peppers on the other and return to the grill, as an open face sandwich.
3. Once cheese is bubbling, remove and place sandwich halves together. Slice in half and serve immediately.

Simple, rich, filling and a perfect something-different for the grill. Serve with a nice cold beer to compliment those rich flavours. Yummerz.

Makes 2 sandwiches.

So, I’m in Baltimore! I wish that I had just eaten this salad but actually I ate it three days ago. Still. I made it and took pretty pictures of it and I still wanted to share something with you even though I am likely either in a conference room as you’re reading this orrrr eating crab cakes and lobster bisque and baking in the 96 degree swelt. Let’s imagine the latter please. Maybe minus the swelt and sweat. Happy thoughts.

I bought a watermelon the other day and then was really overwhelmed by how gigantic the fricking thing was. I mean, they don’t exactly come in petite, do they? Our fridge was already stuffed from grocery shopping when I made the great decision to cut the sucker up. After baking cookies. I don’t know what’s wrong with me, so please don’t ask. I think the heat is doing something mental to me.

Anyway, I found this recipe in my latest copy of Runner’s World of all places. Are any other runners out there suffering with this heat?? What is the deal?! I thought running when it got down to below zero would be rough. Nothing, friends is as rough as trying to run when it’s 93 outside. Bleugh.

Watermelon and Feta Salad with Mint
from Runner’s World

Ingredients

For the Salad:

• 2 pounds watermelon, rind removed
• 1 cup Greek feta cheese, crumbled
• 1 cup fresh mint leaves, cut into a chiffonade (thin strips), or left whole if small
• 1 cup mixed baby greens

For the Lemon Olive Oil Dressing:

• 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt, or to taste
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil or lemon oil

Directions

1. Cut the watermelon into large chunks. Place an equal amount of melon on each of four chilled dinner plates. (Alternatively, cut the melon into four large circles, each one inch thick and four and a half inches wide, and place one circle on each plate.)
2. Sprinkle one-quarter of the cheese, mint, and greens on the watermelon.
3. Then make the dressing: Place the salt and lemon juice in a jar with a lid and shake to blend. Add the oil and shake once more.
4. Taste for seasoning, then drizzle the dressing over each salad. (The dressing will also keep in the refrigerator for up to three days.)

Serves four.

So, Runner’s World were bang on the money with this one. Refreshing. Sweet. Salty. Fragrant. Perfect post-running freshness. AND they had the kindness to tell me what kind of a punch it packs as well. In case you like to know these things: 270 calories, 21g carbs, 7g protein and 20g fat. I’ll have a plate of that, thanks.

What are you doing/did you do this weekend?

Can we talk about Nutella for a little minute? That chocolately hazelnutty spread. The tub itself evokes instant memories for me of eating chocolate spread sandwiches as a child. We always called it chocolate spread, partly because we would often buy the non-brand generic versions of the stuff and partly because we were classy like that.

Chocolate spread. Says it all really, especially about the way I consumed it. Spread between two slices of white bread and gobbled up in a heart beat, leaving me sticky-fingered and happy.

Those are some good memories, and they remind me of my mum’s own memory of eating sugar sandwiches as a child. Yes, just white sugar. You know I also went through an unfortunate ketchup sandwich phase (anyone?!) but I’m digressing massively…

Nutella in baking is not something that ever occurred to me since I am such an aficionado of the nutella sandwich. Dipping strawberries in it, yes. Scooping fingerfuls from the jar, obviously. Baking, well not until now.

Nutella Chocolate Chip Cookies
from Alpine Berry

Ingredients

• 1 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• pinch of salt
• 7 tbsp unsalted butter, at room temp.
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup light brown sugar
• 2/3 cup Nutella (chocolate hazelnut spread)
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup toasted & skinned hazelnuts, coarsely chopped

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Sift together flour, cocoa, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside dry ingredients.
3. Cream together butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in Nutella and vanilla extract. Mix in egg.
4. Add flour mixture and mix until just incorporated. Add chocolate chips and hazelnuts.
5. Drop tablespoons of dough 2 inches apart onto parchment lined baking sheets. Bake for about 11 minutes until the edges look set. Cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes then carefully remove to cooling racks.

Things to note about these cookies:

a) the hazelnuts are amazing in them. Don’t do without them.
b) it was about 103F in my kitchen as I made these. I was already full from eating steak and new potatoes and more pea/mint bruschetta in the garden. We’ll call it a labour of love.
c) yum.
d) mmmm, nutella.
e) i baked them for 11 minutes exactly and kept to the 2 tbsp recommendation of dough blobs. If you go bigger, bake longer. duh. Unless you like suuuuper soft cookies. I would not judge you unkindly for that.
f) seriously just go and buy a tub of Nutella and make these right now. Everyone will thank you.

Have you ever baked with this magic stuff?